In other words, we have no shortage of winter birds at our feeders! However, here we are in the middle of February and we are in the middle of an arctic blast. Is it always that way? Don’t we usually have some evidence that spring is on its way by now? What was it like in past years?
I have looked back at my mid-February photos and found evidence that I would like to share:
A look at a different variety of quince:
Daffodils were starting to emerge:
Japanese Magnolias are always among the early bloomers:
And my favorite — Dogwood:
On February 12, 2018 there was an ice storm — everything was covered in diamonds for a short while, but it melted quickly:
On February 7, 2014 it was definitely still winter:
And if I go back much further, February 2012 for example, we were still living in Guthrie, Oklahoma and taking pictures of the piebald deer in our yard:
I guess this trip down memory lane tells me that the years of early blooming wildflowers were not the regular pattern. They only happened twice in the last nine Februaries. And if memory serves me correctly, one of them was followed by a cold snap, freezing all the buds off after everything started blooming.
However, the year 2017 seems to have been singularly warm. I see no photographic evidence of a freeze later in February or even in March of that year.
Who knows what the weather will be like later this month. It is definitely going to stay cold for a while longer, but eventually spring will arrive. In the meantime, I would like each of you to think about this year and past Valentine’s Days and share with me your favorite memories.